On October 21, 2026, the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) became the first federal banking regulator to issue a final rule implementing the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act. Taking effect on January 18, 2027, this regulatory document establishes a comprehensive legal framework spanning issuance, custody, and third-party partnerships for entities participating in the stablecoin market.
The most notable point in the rulebook lies in how the agency treats stablecoin reward programs—a popular model major crypto exchanges are using to attract user capital inflows.
Refusal to grant blanket exemptions for exchanges
Under the provisions of the GENIUS Act, issuers are strictly prohibited from paying yield to customers tied solely to holding, storing, or maintaining payment stablecoins. This makes the legal boundary between traditional bank deposit interest and digital asset marketing rewards particularly sensitive.
The OCC made clear that it refuses to presume that reward programs existing prior to the enactment of the law are entirely lawful. The fact that the US Congress was aware of the existence of these programs does not mean lawmakers implicitly endorsed their validity. Instead, all reward programs will be assessed by the regulator on a case-by-case basis.
This declaration directly impacts leading exchanges and payment applications. Currently, PayPal offers a 4% reward for PYUSD holders, the Coinbase One program offers 3.75% on USDC holdings, while Kraken pays up to 4.5% for USDG accounts.
An open door for rewards tied to real economic activity
While maintaining a firm stance against exemptions, the OCC also signaled an important legal pathway through its analysis of the statutory language. The agency pointed out that the word “solely” in the prohibition carries substantial legal weight. If a payout is structured around factors other than merely keeping funds in a wallet—such as stemming from payment discounts, transaction frequency, or specific service utilities—the activity may fall outside the scope of the ban.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent praised the OCC’s rule as a pivotal step, establishing a transparent foundation and encouraging healthy competition among private financial institutions in the digital asset sector. In parallel with the OCC, other regulatory agencies, such as the Federal Reserve (Fed) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), are also finalizing liquidity risk management frameworks and reserve ratio standards for their supervised commercial banks.
The OCC’s decision indicates that US regulators are not closing the door on stablecoins, but are tightening the reins to prevent crypto from becoming a shadow banking system that bypasses capital adequacy standards. The coming months will be a real-world test for exchanges, as they must prove their reward models are legitimate product development expenses rather than disguised deposit interest.